


He Never Said What He Did

by orphan_account



Series: Winteriron Prompts [3]
Category: Captain America (Movies), Iron Man (Movies), Marvel
Genre: Alternate Universe - Spies & Secret Agents, M/M, Spy Tony, Truth Serum
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-01-29
Updated: 2016-01-29
Packaged: 2018-05-16 21:32:31
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,145
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5841754
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>“Well, sad to say, I’ve been tortured before. Gonna have to be unique to make me break.”</p><p>Vanko nods, a cruel smile spreading across his lips. “Da. Unique. I can do that.”  The blinding lights go out. It takes Tony a good couple minutes to blink the spots out of his eyes, but once they’re gone, what little humor he had leaves him.</p>
            </blockquote>





	He Never Said What He Did

**Author's Note:**

> The prompt: "Maybe a fic where Tony and Bucky take the place of the main characters from the movie True Lies. It would be really cool if Tony was the spy and Bucky the husband with no idea his other half is a top notch spy. Thank You!"
> 
> I'm not proud of this one. It could have been much better, but this is what you get when the author hasn't seen the movie. Anyway, I had thoughts of adding a second part, but because I haven't seen the movie and I don't like this too much, it hasn't really happened. If you would like to see a second part, please leave a comment saying so, and I may be persuaded to do so.

It’s a slap to the face that wakes Tony. He’s pretty sure this idiot, whoever they are, expects him to tense up and keep his lips shut. That’s what a spy is supposed to do, at least according to the movies. And yeah, maybe that’s what Tony was taught when he first joined SHIELD. _Don’t let the enemy get anything out of you, no matter what._ But Tony just isn’t the type to stick completely to his orders. **  
**

“Lemme guess,” Tony grumbles, never opening his eyes. “You’re going to torture me until you find out how much we know about your bombs.”

A punch to the gut forces all the air out of him, and almost his lunch. He’d be doubled over if not for the restraints. He tests them out as he’s gasping. Hmm, metal bar padded with leather. At least they were courteous.

“Sorry,” he says, once he’s able to get his lungs working again. “Sorry, I mean your antique statues. Your antique statues that totally aren’t hiding bombs within them.”

“You think this is some game, Agent Stark?” The rough voice belongs to Vanko, and if he still didn’t have his eyes closed, Tony would be rolling them. With prejudice. Yeah, he and his squad have been chasing Vanko’s team down, but the technology they’ve been using is enough for Tony to not take them seriously. It might as well be store brand tech, that’s how bad it is. Steve would definitely be giving him the disapproving look he has down pat if he could hear Tony’s thoughts. Or, you know, be in the room at all. “You think I won’t kill you without a second thought?”

Tony finally opens his eyes, and automatically wishes he didn’t. While he doesn’t have to be staring at Vanko’s ugly mug, the light in the background is blinding and keeps everything past Vanko’s outline out of sight. But this isn’t about visibility at this point. He’s gotta talk big until the Avengers squad tracks him down and busts him out.

“If that were the case,” he speaks up, “you would have done it already. You’re toying with me, wanting to make me miserable, or find out information. But hey, if it’s the latter, why not get the former at the same time?”

Vanko chuckles, folding his arms. “Yes, miserable. That is what I want from you. I don’t care about the information. The _Avengers_ will be occupied looking for you, and in that time: Boom.”

Tony frowns, keeping his confusion hidden. Why put so much focus on Tony, some spy who just began to track Vanko down? He’s not the leader of the squad, nor the one with the most combat training. He’s more like the mechanic, arming his squad with everything they need to be in tip-top shape. He decides not to think about it just yet. “Well, sad to say, I’ve been tortured before. Gonna have to be unique to make me break.”

Vanko nods, a cruel smile spreading across his lips. “Da. Unique. I can do that.” He shouts behind him in Russian - _something something off something_ \- and the blinding lights go out soon after. It takes Tony a good couple minutes to blink the spots out of his eyes, but once they’re gone, what little humor he had leaves him.

Right there, behind Vanko, strapped to his own chair, is James. James, who should have been at home or out with Pepper. James, who Tony meant to surprise with lunch just the other day but discovered he was flirting with some guy who was calling himself a spy. James, who is very much awake, and is gaping at Tony in betrayal. Shit.

Before Tony can say anything, Vanko speaks again, “Not so funny now, Agent Stark? Pity. Your jokes, I hear, are the best in your squad. No matter.” Vanko moves over to a table pushed against the wall to Tony’s left, lined with what Tony can only assume are torture implements.

Torture implements they could be using on James very soon.

Vanko picks up a needle, holds it level with his face for a moment before turning back to him. “Truth serum.”

“Doesn’t exist,” Tony automatically replies. “You can’t make anyone tell the truth with any chemical cocktail, just make their lips loose.”

“Well then, Agent Stark.” Vanko steps over to him slowly. “Let’s make those lips looser.” Tony watches helplessly as Vanko sticks him with the needle though he does note James trying to work himself out of the restraints. Which brings Tony some relief, knowing that no matter how much he’s hurt James with the lies, he doesn’t completely hate him.

Not yet, at least.

Vanko finally pulls away, tossing the needle into some bin out of sight. “Have a good talk,” he says, before stepping behind Tony and exiting out of what sounds like a door. A wooden door.

“Thought so,” Tony blurts, “Vanko has no appreciation for advanced tech.”

“Tony,” James finally speaks up. “What the fuck is going on? I thought you were just a mechanical engineer.”

“I am,” Tony says, and adds before he can stop himself, “but I use my engineering to work with a spy organization called SHIELD, and I’ve been working with them ever since I came back from Afghanistan.”

“But Stark Industries…”

“Pepper’s been CEO since I came back, and it’s been running better with her holding the reins, because I was tired of fucking things up and killing people because of my fuck ups, but I occasionally get called in to help with the R&D department ‘cause sometimes they’re numbskulls who don’t even know how to work an electric toothbrush and they need me to hold their hand as they work through the very scary process of getting their shit together, _fuck_ I need to stop talking but it’s not stopping, it’s like I’m vomiting words, projectile vomiting words, this really fucking sucks-”

“Shut up, Tony,” James grumbles, and hey, look at that. It’s enough to get Tony to shut up.

It’s quiet for a good long while. James isn’t looking at him anymore, is in fact looking everywhere but at him. If Tony hadn’t screwed up his marriage beyond repair, he would think he didn’t deserve it. …Okay, maybe he would still think he deserved it, but the reason would be a lot less obvious than it is right now.

Because he lied to James. (Steve lied too, but James isn’t fucking Steve. Probably won’t be fucking Tony after this, either.)

He lied about being just a mechanical engineer. He lied about the business flights he had to take. He lied about why he couldn’t make it to dinners, to dates, to parties. He lied about almost everything.

It doesn’t even matter that he was ordered to lie, because since when has Tony ever cared about orders that limit him? Why did he have to stick to this one order? Since when did he care more about the rules than James?

Tony sighs when he realizes the rules matter because James matter. If James knew from the beginning, what would he do? He would try to get involved. Despite being honorably discharged, James still has that itch to help, to serve. And with Tony making James’ new arm, what would have stopped him from joining SHIELD? Nothing, that’s what. It doesn’t matter how many homeless shelters and animal shelters and after-school programs he’s been helping, James would drop all of it just like that if it meant he could get back into the fray.

And then where would Tony be?

“With me at your side,” James says, staring back at Tony with the saddest, most heartbreaking expression. Shit, how much of that was said out loud? “I would be right at your side, helping you and your squad take down shits like Mr. Russian out there. I would be doing the right thing. I would be doing something useful. And you would be right there with me.”

“And you would probably die right there with me, too,” Tony replies miserably. “My job is dangerous, James. All those ‘car accidents’ were just me recovering from missions where I got too close to the edge.”

“Oh, and I’m supposed to just be okay with you putting your life in danger like that?” James shakes his head. Then his face sort of crumples and Tony’s heart will never be ready for seeing that look on his husband’s face. “You know, I thought our marriage was falling apart.”

“James,” Tony begins, but not even the truth serum could keep him talking with the glare James gave him.

“Shut up, I’m talking now. I thought you loved your job more than me, and I was like, ‘Okay, that fucking sucks, but I can do something to change that.’ So I did everything I could to try to get you to love me more, to decide you didn’t need to stay late at work. Occasionally I thought you decided to put work to the side, and I thought I was finally doing things right. But then you’d be right back to ‘sorry, babe, gotta stay late’ or ‘honey, I can’t, I have a meeting over in Portland’. I started getting frustrated, wondered what the hell made your job more important than your marriage.” The heartbroken look comes back in full force. “Turns out it’s more important when you’re trying to save the world.”

“I love you, James,” Tony says, his throat tight with emotion. “I never think the job is more important than you.”

“Really? You really think the world isn’t worth saving if I asked you to stay home instead?” James stares down at his feet. “How is a husband supposed to compete with the safety of the world?”

Tony blinks back tears and leans forward in the chair. As far as he can, anyway. “James. James, listen to me, alright? You never have to compete, and I mean never. As soon as you came into my life, I’ve only ever done what I do to keep you safe.”

“That doesn’t mean you won’t put the job first.”

“James, I’ve been written up three times the past month for insubordination because I wanted to go on a date with you. You think we barely see each other now? If I actually cared about the job, you would never see me. Seriously, if you don’t believe me, ask Steve. Now quiet, I think I heard something that could be very important.”

James blinks incredulously. “Fucking seriously? _That’s_ how you’re going to end the conversation? ‘I love you, but shut up, I have to do my job’? What the fuck, Tony?”

“No, seriously, James. If my calculations are correct, my baby is gonna burst through that wall in the next six seconds.”

“Your _baby_? Are you fucking kidding me right now? Who the fuck is your-”

Of course Tony’s ears and calculations are still working right, because the wall to his right bursts inward, and through the dust the bright blue light at the center of the armor’s chest can be seen.

“Yeah, baby,” Tony says happily. “Just in time. Come over here, break these restraints.”

“Who the fuck is this?” James coughs, trying to shake the dust off himself.

“This is my baby. The Mark VI. There are about twenty other renditions of him, but he’s the one that’s specially tuned to my biometrics. Yes!” Tony shoots up out of the chair promptly after the armor rips the bonds off of him. “Open up for daddy now.”

“Wha-?” The sound is blocked out temporarily as Tony’s helmet slips onto his head, but the world around him comes back to life as the suit connects back together. He turns and pulls the restraints off his husband’s wrists easily, smiling despite knowing James won’t see it.

He holds out his hand in invitation as he asks, “Are you ready for some thrilling heroics?”

James’ shock quickly subsides, his lips thinning to show how unamused he is. “You choose now to quote nerd media? No wonder I thought you were just an engineer.”

The smile subsides. “Babe, I swear, I really wanted to tell you, but… I also really wanted to keep you safe. I’d rather you hate me than be dead.”

James stares up at him consideringly, long enough that Tony thinks maybe he fucked up for the last time, before he takes Tony’s hand and pulls himself to his feet. “How long has the serum not been working?”

Tony thinks about it. “Hmm. Probably when you told me to shut up the first time. Ha, take that Vanko. I knew it was total bullshit.”

James smiles, small but genuine. It’s enough to settle the worry in Tony’s heart. “I’ve got your six if you can get me a gun.”

Tony nods. “Piece of cake.”


End file.
